EAL 337: Highway Engineering

Flexible Pavement Design

[JKR Method]
DR. MOHD ROSLI MOHD HASAN
 Pavement Design
Pavement design: thickness design of flexible pavement
JKR ATJ 5/85 (Pindaan 2013)
AASHTO pavement design method

Course outcome:
Able to design pavement based on JKR and AASHTO
specification,
Distinguish, design and make comparison between flexible
and rigid pavements
 Characteristics of Flexible
Pavement
Consists of several layers

Wearing course
Material quality/Stiffness

Surface course
Binder course
Stress level

Road base course

Sub-base course

Sub-grade course
 Subgrade
Soil or rock formation which forms the foundation of the
pavement and consists of a prepared cut or compacted
fill.
Primary function is to support the load transmitted from the
overlying layers.
When required and specified, weak sub-grade materials
shall be
replaced with selected materials
or stabilized up to a depth of at least 300mm below sub-
grade level.
 Subbase
Place directly on the sub-grad. Have better engineering
properties than the sub-grade material in terms of bearing
capacity.
Shall be considered as lower road base that supports the
upper road base and disperse the load from the road base
before transmitting it to the sub-grade.
Because stress levels are lower in the sub-base course than
in the road base, sub-base materials are usually of lower
quality and stiffness than materials used as road base.
Typically sub-base materials used include lower quality in-
situ materials such as sand, stabilised soils or laterite soils.
 Road base
Main structural layer - the most important layer and
normally the thickest layer.
Key function is to distribute traffic loads so that sub-base
and sub-grade are not subjected to excessive stresses and
strains.
Materials used for road base shall consist of bituminous
mixtures, or a granular layer stabilised with cement,
emulsion or similar materials, or mechanically stabilised but
otherwise unbound crushed aggregate road base or wet-
mix road base.
 Surface Course
Topmost layer and has direct contact with traffic.
Consist of two layers:
Bituminous binder course - part of the surface layers. Have
good resistance to shear-induced distress.
Bituminous wearing course forms an impermeable and
flexible lining of high elastic modulus. Have adequate
strength (resistance to stresses and strains imposed by traffic
loads) and durability (resistance to the disintegration effects
of climate), good frictional characteristics to prevent
skidding and must waterproof the entire pavement
structure.
Source: ATJ 5/85 (Pindaan 2013)
Source: ATJ 5/85 (Pindaan 2013)
Principles of Pavement Structural
Design
The primary function of the pavement structure is to
reduce and distribute the surface stress (contact tire
pressure) to an acceptable level at the subgrade (to a
level that prevents permanent deformation).
 Distribution of load in a
flexible pavement
Wheel load
Reduced the stresses by
distributing the traffic wheel
loads over greater and greater
areas, through the individual
layers, until the stress at the
subgrade is at an acceptably
low level.

Subgrade course
 Concepts of pavement design

Strains critical to pavement

performance:
Vertical strain on top of the
sub-grade
Horizontal strain at the bottom
of the lowest bound pavement
course.
Type and course thickness of
paving materials are selected
to ensure that the above strains
remain within an acceptable
range.

Source: ATJ 5/85 (Pindaan 2013)

Vertical strain Horizontal Strain
To control To control fatigue
accumulation of damage due to
permanent repeated traffic loads.
deformation of the
sub-grade.

Both strain values are expressed as a function

of traffic volume.
 Thickness Design

ATJ 5/85 (Pindaan 2013)

Manual for the Structural Design of Flexible
Pavement
Determination of Design Traffic
Axle loads of passenger cars are too low to cause
significant pavement distress, therefore traffic counts and
axle load spectra used for pavement design are based on
the volume and type f commercial vehicles (CV).
Traffic data considered in the manual:
Number of CVs during Year 1 of Design
Period, which is the expected year of
completion of construction.
Vehicle class and axle load distribution.
Directional and lane distributions factors.
Traffic growth factor
Design Procedure
The procedure for calculating the Traffic Category to be
used as design input is as follows:
1. From traffic counts and information provided
by HPU, determine:
a) Initial Average Daily Traffic (ADT) in one direction;
the average should be based on a minimum of 3
days, 24 hours per day. If traffic count covers a time
period of 0600 to 2200 hours, multiple the traffic
count reported by HPU with a factor of 1.2.
b) Percentage of Commercial Vehicles (CV) with un-
laden weight of more than 1.5 tons (PCV) and load
equivalence factor (LEF).
c) Average Annual Traffic Growth Factor (r) for CV.
 Axle configuration and load equivalence factors
(LEF) based on traffic categories used by HPU

Vehicle Load Equivalence

Factor (LEF) Mixed traffic (axle
HPU class designation Class loads and axle
groups) is converted
Cars and taxis C 0
into the number of
Small trucks and vans ESAL repetitions by
CV1 0.1
(2 axles) using load factors.

Large trucks (2 to 4 axles) CV2 4.0

Articulated trucks (3 or
CV3 4.4
more axles)
Buses (2 or 3 axles) CV4 1.8
Motorcycles MC 0

Commercial traffic (mixed) CV% 3.7

 Total growth factor (TGF)
Annual Growth Rate, r (%)
Design period
(years) 2 3 4 5 6 7
5 5.20 5.31 5.42 5.53 5.64 5.75

10 10.95 11.46 12.01 12.58 13.18 13.82

15 17.29 18.60 20.02 21.58 23.28 25.13

20 24.30 26.87 29.78 33.06 36.79 41.00

25 32.03 36.46 41.65 47.73 54.86 63.25

30 40.57 47.58 56.08 66.44 79.06 94.46

 2. Determine lane distribution factor (L) and terrain
factor (T) based on geometric design of road:
a) Lane distribution factor (L)

Number of lanes (in one direction) Lane distribution factor, L

One 1.0
Two 0.9
Three or more 0.7
Note: Traffic in the primary design lane (one direction) decreases with
increasing number of lanes

b) Terrain conditions (flat, rolling or mountainous)

Type of terrain Terrain factor, T
Flat 1.0
Rolling 1.1
Mountainous/ steep 1.3
Note: As terrain changes from flat to mountainous topography, the percentage of road
sections with steep slopes and with curves increases, thus increasing stresses and strains
in pavement structures due to breaking, acceleration and cornering of commercial vehicles.
 3. Select Design Period based on economic and social
consideration.
Design period of 10 years is recommended for low volume
roads and other rural roads.
A minimum design period of 20 years is recommended for
roads having medium to high traffic volume.

Note: The design procedure chosen shall be checked against

Maximum Hourly One Way Traffic flow capacity (refer to A Guide on
Geometric Design of Roads, REAM GL2/2002). If the traffic capacity is
exceeded before the design period, the designer may reduce the
design period used in the design accordingly. Alternatively, the design
period may be allowed to exceed the time taken to reach traffic
capacity. In this regard, a proper pavement evaluation works shall be
carried out if future upgrading works in deemed necessary.
 4. Calculate the Design Traffic (Number of ESALs)
for the Design Lane and Base Year, Y1 (first year
of Design Period) using the following formula:
ESALY1 = ADT x 365 x Pcv x 3.7 x L x T

If site specific distribution of traffic by vehicle type is available, the

above equation shall be refined as follows:
ESALY1 = [ADTVC1 x LEF1 + ADTVC2 x LEF2 + ADTVC3 x LEF3 + ADTCV4 x LEF4] x 365 x L x T
4. Calculate the Design Traffic (Number of
ESALs) for the Design Period (Design Life in
years) using the following formula:

Design Traffic ESALDES = ESALY1 x [(1 + r)n 1]

r

Alternatively, the following simplified equation shall be used in

conjunction with the Total Growth Factor (TGF)

Design Traffic ESALDES = ESALY1 x TGF

 Traffic Categories

Traffic categories Design Traffic (ESAL x 106)

T1 1.0
T2 1.1 to 2.0
T3 2.1 to 10.0
T4 10.1 to 30.0
T5 > 30
 Properties of Sub-Grade
Sub-grade strength is one of the most important factor in
determining pavement thickness, composition of layers and
overall pavement performance.
A minimum CBR of 5% is recommended for pavements that
have to support traffic volumes corresponding to Traffic Classes
T1 through T5.
If the sub-grade does not meet this minimum requirement, at
least 300mm of unsuitable sub-grade soil shall be replaced or
stabilized.
For road pavements designed for large volumes of traffic (Traffic
Class T4 and T5), a minimum sub-grade strength corresponding
to CBR of 12% is recommended.
Classes of Sub-grade Strength (based on CBR)

Sub-grade Elastic Modulus (Mpa)

CBR (%)
category Range Design Input Value

SG1 5 to 12 50 to 120 60

SG2 12.1 to 20 80 to 140 120

SG3 20.1 to 30.0 100 to 160 140

SG4 > 30.0 120 to 180 180

Design of Standardized Pavement Structures
Pavements will perform satisfactorily and maintenance
requirements and life cycle costs will be low if the thickness of
the bound (asphalt or stabilised) layer is 18cm. Therefore, a
minimum of 18cm of bituminous material is recommended for
pavements designed for Traffic Categories T3 or higher.
Underneath bituminous pavement courses, a minimum
combined thickness of granular road base and sub-base of
30cm and a minimum thickness of granular road base of 20cm
are used for all Traffic Categories.
For a full-depth asphalt pavements, a minimum thickness
granular sub-base of 10cm may be used at the discretion of the
designer.
 Conceptual Outlines of Pavement
Structures
Traffic Category (based on million ESALs @ 80 kN)
Pavement
1 1 to 2 2.1 to 10 10.1 to 30 > 30
Structure
T1 T2 T3 T4 T5
Combined
Thickness of 24 cm
Bituminous Layers 20 cm
18 cm
5 cm 10cm
Crushed
Aggregate
Road Base + Sub-
Base for Sub-
grade CBR of:
5 to 12 25+15 cm 20+15 cm 20+20 cm NR NR
12.1 to 20 20+15 cm 20+15 cm 20+20 cm 20+20 cm 20+20 cm
20.1 to 30 20+10 cm 20+10 cm 20+15 cm 20+15 cm 20+15 cm
> 30 20 cm 20+10 cm 20+10 cm 20+10 cm 20+10 cm
Types of Standardized Pavement Structures
Are divided into 3 groups:
Conventional flexible pavement with granular
base.
Deep-strength flexible (composite) pavement
with bituminous surface course(s) and a base
stabilised with Portland cement, bituminous
emulsion, or a combination of both.
Full-depth asphalt pavement with bituminous
base course.

Deep-strength and full-depth asphalt pavements are

generally superior to conventional flexible pavement
structures with granular base.
Pavement Structures for Traffic Category T1: < 1.0 million ESALs

Note: Chip seal application of binder in the form of an emulsion or bitumen, followed by an
application of single size aggregate.
Pavement Structures for Traffic Category T2: 1.0 to 2.0 million ESALs
Pavement Structures for Traffic Category T3: 2.0 to 10.0 million ESALs
Pavement Structures for Traffic Category T4: 10.0 to 30.0 million ESALs
Pavement Structures for Traffic Category T5: > 30.0 million ESALs
Pavement Structures for Traffic Category T5: > 30.0 million ESALs (Use
of Polymer Modified Asphalt)
Sample calculations